Lidar altimeters provide better range resolution and smaller beam size compared to conventional microwave radar systems. It is known that the range accuracy of a lidar system σR depends on signal bandwidth B and the receiver signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) as σR∝c/(B√{square root over (SNR)}), where c is the speed of light and signal bandwidth B is inversely proportional to the pulse width. In order to achieve acceptable range accuracy and detection sensitivity, satellite-based lidar systems generally operate in short pulse and high peak power regime with relatively low pulse repetition rate. In this case, photon damage has been a concern because megawatt level pulse peak power may cause damage to optical devices and therefore shorten the lifetime of the optical system.